Male nominate race has top and side of head and nape black, yellow collar on hindneck; upperparts dark olive- green, upperwing and tail black, outer primaries narrowly edged light brown; chin black, throat white; upper breast black, extending laterally to black of nape, remainder to underparts yellow, lower breast and belly strongly washed orange; iris dark brown; bill black; legs grey. Female has top and side of head and nape grey, upperparts olive- green, upperwing and tail as male except that inner primaries and secondaries edged olive- green on outer webs, wing- coverts broadly edged olive- green; chin and upper breast grey, throat white with dusky mottling, broad olive- green band on lower breast, flanks olive- green, remainder of underparts yellow. Juvenile has plumage mainly reddish- chestnut; immature like female. Race obscurior has belly somewhat more ochraceous than nominate; cyclopum has bill larger, wing longer, female with upperparts more greenish, breast paler.
Male nominate race has top and side of head and nape black, yellow collar on hindneck; upperparts dark olive- green, upperwing and tail black, outer primaries narrowly edged light brown; chin black, throat white; upper breast black, extending laterally to black of nape, remainder to underparts yellow, lower breast and belly strongly washed orange; iris dark brown; bill black; legs grey. Female has top and side of head and nape grey, upperparts olive- green, upperwing and tail as male except that inner primaries and secondaries edged olive- green on outer webs, wing- coverts broadly edged olive- green; chin and upper breast grey, throat white with dusky mottling, broad olive- green band on lower breast, flanks olive- green, remainder of underparts yellow. Juvenile has plumage mainly reddish- chestnut; immature like female. Race obscurior has belly somewhat more ochraceous than nominate; cyclopum has bill larger, wing longer, female with upperparts more greenish, breast paler.
15- 16.5 cm; 19- 25 g
Taxonomy: Pachycephala Schlegelii Schlegel, 1871, Arfak Mountains, New Guinea. Formerly considered conspecific with P. lorentzi, but found to occur sympatrically with that species. Both are members of a species group that includes also P. orpheus, P. nudigula, P. meyeri, P. soror, P. implicata, P. pectoralis, P. caledonica, P. jacquinoti, P. flavifrons, P. melanura and P. aurea. Racial identity of birds in Kumawa Mts (Bomberai Peninsula) and Torricelli Mts (North Coastal Range) uncertain; provisionally included in, respectively, nominate race and obscurior. Three subspecies currently described. (source: Handbook of the Birds of World)
Subspecies and Distribution:
- * schlegelii Schlegel, 1871 - mountains of Vogelkop (Tamrau Mts, Arfak Mts) and Bomberai Peninsula (Kumawa Mts) and Wandammen Mts, in NW New Guinea. * cyclopum E. J. O. Hartert, 1930 - Cyclops Mts, in CN New Guinea. * obscurior E. J. O. Hartert, 1896 - mountain ranges of New Guinea E from Weyland Mts, including North Coastal Range (Torricelli Mts), Huon Peninsula (Saruwaged Mts) and SE peninsula.
Forest and forest edge at 1300- 3650 m, mainly above 1850 m. At lower elevations replaced by P. soror, sometimes with considerable overlap; replaced above 2700 m by P. lorentzi where ranges overlap, but the two co- exist at lower elevations.
Insects; sometimes seeds. At lower altitudes forages in lower (60%) and mmiddle (c. 40%) storeys, where feeds in inner two- thirds of tree (large and small branches, etc.); in upper montane zone shifts upwards, foraging in canopy (c. 5%), and more in middle to outer thirds of tree (branches and outer foliage). Obtains prey by gleaning.
Males with enlarged testes in Jul- Sept and fledgling in early Sept. Clutch 2 eggs, white, with small black and purple spots concentrated as wreath at larger end, 26,9- 28 x 20- 20,6 mm. No other information.